The Lost Colony

Artemis Fowl Series, Book 5

Thousands of years ago, fairies and humans fought a great battle for the magical island of Ireland. When it became clear that they could not win, all of the fairies moved belowground–except for the 8th Family, the demons. Rather than surrender, they used a magical time spell to take their colony out of time and into Limbo. There they have lived for decades, preparing to exact their violent revenge on humans. Now the time spell is unraveling, and demons are beginning to materialize without warning on Earth. If humans were to find out about them, all fairies would be exposed. To protect themselves, the fairies must predict when the next demon will materialize. But in order to do so, they will have to decipher temporal equations so complicated; even a great brain like Foaly can't understand them. But he knows someone who can: Artemis Fowl. So when a very confused demon imp appears in a Sicilian theater, Artemis is there to meet him. But he is not alone. There is someone else who has unlocked the secrets of the fairy world and managed to solve complex mathematical problems as only a genius could. And she is just twelve years old. . .From the Cassette edition.

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Artemis Fowl is a great book for kids to read if they are in to mystery and action books. I in joy the Artemis Fowl books after a good day to end the day off well. Artemis Fowl in my opinion is a four and a half rated book.

I remember reading the first Artemis Fowl book when it was new and describing the fun blend of action and humor as having the appeal factors of a "Captain Underpants for teens"--equal parts smart and silly, rebellious and undermining of social norms, championing youth as intelligent and capable, and full of adventure and discovery.
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I've been slowly working my way through the rest of the series since--I grab one every so often when craving some reliable storytelling fun--and have seen the character grow and mature. When I started The Lost Colony it popped into my head that I needed to update my appeal factors description to "Doctor Who for teens" (not that Doctor Who isn't already for teens). Compared to that first book, this one has less bodily function humor and more high-tech action, less idolization of criminal enterprises and more interest in relationships, caring, and compassion. And, as always, it's a great time.